1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a flexible support acting as a cushion for the human body to sit or lie on.
2. Description of the Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 4,005,236 discloses a flexible support which consists of individual inflatable hollow bodies. In the un-inflated condition, the hollow bodies are folded and at a mutual distance from one another. When inflated, they unfold, so that in the inflated condition, they bear against and mutually support one another. The hollow bodies are disposed in rows in two directions perpendicular to one another and have, in the inflated condition, a rectangular cross-section parallel with their base, so that they form a self-contained sitting or lying surface. All the hollow bodies must, therefore, be inflated by substantially the same pressure, since, if the supporting effect of even only one hollow body fails, the whole sitting or lying surface may become unstable. The support function is, therefore, very adversely affected if even one of the hollow bodies is unable to maintain the required pressure due to a leak.
In hospitals, patients with external injuries are moreover, frequently not permitted to lie on a support in the area of such injuries, so that such areas of support are advantageously omitted from the lying surface. The formation of bed sores on particularly vulnerable parts of the body with prolonged hospitalization can also be avoided if, in the zone of such places, the lying surface is at least periodically altered that it exerts no pressure on the patient's body at the vulnerable place. This arrangement is not possible with the support known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,005,236, in which all the hollow bodies must have substantially an identical internal pressure, so that a lying surface with areas of differentiated resilience cannot be produced.